UC Santa Barbara takes pride in its beautiful beachfront location on the bluffs above the sand — but owning property directly on the coast comes with risk.

The Carsey-Wolf Center presents a series of lectures that tackle the problem of sea level rise and what – if anything – can be done about. The first episode gathers a variety earth science and architectural experts to examine what might happen to Santa Barbara and other shorelines as sea levels rise.

The bluffs have been slowly eroding since the beginning of their existence, but what happens as the sea levels rise more quickly due to global warming? What options are there to avoid massive destruction? Should we build large or larger defensive sea walls or will we be forced to retreat from the crumbling cliffs?

It gives to us every hour of every day, but today – Earth Day – is the day we set aside to give back.

While it’s true that the home base for human beings has its share of challenges, many of its citizens — including researchers at the University of California — are working to preserve and conserve it for future generations.

Discover some of what these UC folk are up to at UCTV’s Climate video library. From the atmosphere up above, to the deepest parts of the sea – and everything that exists in between — you’ll discover something new about your planet on its “official” day.

Why not start out with one of these new UCTV programs?

Restoring the Gulf MarshesUC Berkeley graduate student Thomas Azwell is helping to restore the Gulf of Mexico’s marshes after they were severely damaged by the Deepwater Horizon oil spill from April to July of 2010. Partnering with researchers and agencies in the Gulf, the Environmental Science student is staking tubes of cotton netting stuffed with pre-composted sugar cane fiber into the dying marshes of Louisiana, testing whether the environmentally sustainable waste material can give a larger variety of plants a better chance at healing the oil-damaged wetlands.

Silent Spring + 50: Lessons from San Diego’s Bees and BaysSan Diego Coastkeeper’s Jill Witkowski and Dr. James Nieh of UC San Diego address two major environmental problems in the region – water pollution and the devastating effect of parasites and pesticides (research conducted by former UCSD graduate student, Daren Eiri) on the honey bee population. Both presentations shed light on how members of the public can work with San Diego researchers to protect our natural resources and create a more sustainable community.

University of California’s Natural Reserve System (NRS) is a system of protected sites that broadly represent California’s rich ecological diversity. What better way to celebrate Earth Day than with a video tour of some of these pristine locations that, together, make up the largest university-operated system of natural reserves in the world.

New NRS programs will be available online on Earth Day–April 22–at our Earth Day website, where you’ll also find links to related topics like climate change, sustainability, “green” sciences, and much more.